


Like Ocean's Waves

by CrystalNavy



Category: One Piece
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-18
Packaged: 2019-09-19 19:38:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17007921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrystalNavy/pseuds/CrystalNavy
Summary: The Strawhats - sans Luffy - get to One Piece, and use the treasure to return to the past.They desire only one thing: to be by their Captain's side, no matter what.





	1. Your Betrayal

"What do you mean, not ready?" Arlong towered over an unfortunate villager

"We haven't had the time to gather it yet......" the man stammered

"Don't talk back to me, human." Arlong growled, backhanding the offender "You are lucky to be under our heel, where you belong."

"Arlong-sama." Kuroobi approached his boss "Nami has returned."

"Good." Arlong laughed "I made a deal with Nami, which prohibits me from harming any of you. Let's see what she wants."

"No need." Nami said "I am here."

"Glad to have you back, Nami." Arlong greeted with a smile "How is your money-gathering going?"

"Pretty good." Nami smiled "I reckon that I'll have all of it in month's time. Then my village shall be free."

"Good. Let's go back to Arlong park." Arlong lead her away, laughing.

Unknown to them, several people were standing on a rooftop nearby.

And all of them had their gazes trained on Arlong and Nami.

-x-

There was a knock on the door. Then another. And another.

Nami smiled. This was the signal. Carefully, she opened the door and allowed a small group inside.

"Glad to see you." she greeted

"Glad to see you too, dearest Nami!"

"Now let's get down to business." Nami said "The main reason we returned to the past is to ensure that Luffy doesn't lose any of the people he cares about this time around. This is where we come in, and it starts with outsmarting Arlong."

"Good plan." Robin said "We'll make him think he has an upper hand and then we'll rob him of victory when he least expects it."

-x-

"And then we......"

"Excuse me, but are you Arlong?" 

"As a matter of fact, I am."

"Excellent. My name is Zoro, a bounty hunter. And you, Arlong, have quite a decent bounty on your head."


	2. At the Turn of the Tide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arlong Park Arc Retold: Part 1

Arlong and Zoro stared one another down, with Nami standing behind Arlong with a fierce look in her eyes.

"So tell me why have you decided to target me now?" Arlong frowned

"It doesn't matter." Zoro grinned wolfishly "All that matters is that we are shutting this place down and leaving your crew without their Captain."

"Who is this 'we'?"

"Didn't you read the newspapers?" Zoro asked nonchalantly

"So it was true." Arlong's eyes narrowed "You had partnered with 'Devil's Child' Nico Robin."

"We found out we have the same values." Zoro shrugged "So we made a deal. I get her help in bounty hunting, she gets to save her own life and the life of another person who is stigmatized just like her."

By now, Arlong was getting curious.

"Tell you what." Arlong grinned "If you tell me who this person is, I'll spare your life."

Slowly, Zoro shook his head.

"I think you are misunderstanding something. Our lives aren't in your hands. Rather, it's your life that is in our hands." Zoro grinned "Besides, we promised we would never give out the identity of this person."

Zoro proceeded to pull out his three swords.

"Come to think of it, some of your crewmen would be happy to get rid of you." Zoro gave Arlong a rather intense stare "Which is why Robin is busy cleaning out a rat infestation while I am distracting you."

"What." Arlong growled

-x-

It was Captain's Nezumi's lucky day. Thanks to Arlong's info, he was about to get rich, and Arlong would get to keep his star crewmate.

It was a win-win for both of them.

At least until a bunch of appendages sprouted out from the ground, lifting him high up in the air before slamming him back down with brute force.

"Who is there?" Nezumi looked around frantically

"My, my, Captain Nezumi." Robin stepped out of the shadows "I am suprised you haven't heard of me, one of two biggest threats to the World Government, right along with Pirate King's child."

Nezumi stared at her in horror.

"But more importantly, what you are about to do will ruin my friend's future forever, so I can't let you touch this treasure." Robin said calmly "Ocho Fleur: Flip!"

Hands sprouted from the ground, flipping Nezumi upside down and causing him to land on his butt.

"Ah, the true owner of this treasure is here." Robin smiled 

"Dig it up, men!" Nezumi screamed "Are you going to let a little girl intimidate you!"

"Marines, taking orders from a pirate?" Robin said coldly "How disgusting. But then, I should expect nothing less from the organization willing to give a bounty to a child, and willing to kill a baby just because their father was a threat."

"What are you waiting for, men?!" Nezumi shrieked


	3. Release

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plans are in motion.

The wind was just perfect for the upcoming journey. It wasn't too strong, but it wasn't too weak either, and it provided just enough air for their sails to move the ship. Not to mention that it wasn't too harsh like some winds tended to be either. In fact, it was just the opposite. It was a breeze which provided relief for the crew. And since they were in the area where climate was pretty hot, this relief was something they desperately needed.

"Something troubling you, Jinbe?" Nami sat down next to the sole Fishman in their crew

"I was just thinking about Ace." Jinbe stared at the horizon with a sad look "He was much like my former Captain, as is Luffy. It was supposed to be me who died on that day, not him."

"Don't blame yourself for that." Nami said gently "If anything, we are the ones to blame, for not being there for Luffy like you were. Besides, we will fix this, in our true Straw Hat fashion. That was why we traveled back in time to begin with. We will do the impossible. We will preserve the old era. We will save Whitebeard, and we will save Ace."

Jinbe stood up, nodding, determination flaring in his eyes.

"Do you remember the plan?" Nami addressed the crew

"Yes." Zoro grinned "It will be followed to the letter."

-x-

Dracule Mihawk yawned. It was yet another Warlord meeting he was forced to attend. He didn't understand why he still bothered to go in the first place. He watched with feigned passion as other Warlords entered. The only Warlords that interested him were Boa Hancock and Jinbe. The two seemed pretty close, all things considered.

Then, his eyes locked with Jinbe's, and he began to question his observations till now. This Jinbe was different than the one he thought he had known. There was a raw pain in Jinbe's eyes that wasn't there before.

He saw a movement out of the corner of his eye and he focused his attention on Sengoku, who had finally arrived.

"You are probably wondering why I have called you out here." Sengoku began "There is a rookie whose bounty is rising exponentially. His name is....."

Mihawk would have tuned Sengoku's words out if weren't for Jinbe's reaction to them. His fellow Warlord was clenching and unclenching his fists, making his knuckles turn white.

Finally, after what seemed like a life-time, the meeting was finally over, and Mihawk decided to approach Jinbe and get some answers.

"So, what is bothering you?" Mihawk asked as casually as he could

"None of your business." Jinbe said coldly

He then stalked out, leaving Mihawk behind.

-x-

"So why have you called me here, Jinbe? And why did you insist I wear this?" a young voice demanded

There were two kegs of booze on the table between Jinbe and his companion, ready to be consumed.

"Because if they saw me and you together, they would revoke my Warlord status in a flash, and you'll be in danger too." Jinbe pointed out 

"I already am." his companion shrugged

"You'll be in more danger than you are in now." Jinbe amended "Times are changing, and unfortunately, you will be in the very epicenter of the changes to come."

"So they know?"

"If you are asking whether they know who you really are, then yes, they do." Jinbe took another mouthful of sake "Sengoku announced it this morning. They offered you a Warlord status to lure you in. They planned to capture you during our next meeting and have you executed in public. I thought it was only fair to warn you."

"Thanks for letting me know." his companion drank the remaining sake "Well, I need to go. Duty calls."

With that, he stood up and headed for the exit. Before he could reach it, however, he was struck from behind with the beer keg, and knocked out. Jinbe picked him off the floor.

"Sorry about this." Jinbe murmured "But you are my friend and a bearer of D. I will keep you safe this time around, even if it costs me my life."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, the person near the end is who you think he is. He and Jinbe knew each other earlier than they did in canon.
> 
> And yes, Jinbe did kidnap him.


	4. The Devil's Son

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The future Straw Hat Pirates start their true plan.

The house was rather old, but pretty sturdy. It stood near the edge of a small town in East Blue. In the eyes of the many, including the residents, it was just an ordinary house. Only those who weren't exactly ordinary could see it for what it really was. A place of refuge.

Currently, the house had only one occupant. It was a young man in mid-twenties, who had a rather bored look on his face. Sighing, the young man ran a hand through his hair. There was simply nothing to do here. True, he could read books, but he was running out of them. He yearned to go outside and experience the world that he wanted to experience in the first place. Unfortunately, he was disallowed from stepping outside, and there were measures put in place to make sure he didn't.

While he could understand the reasoning behind such an arrangement, that didn't mean he liked it. Especially since the people who shared this house with him had gone out to find a certain Devil Fruit. Or at least that was what they told him. As far as he knew, Devil Fruits were a myth, and it was probably an excuse for them to go out on an adventure. Without him.

Then again, he though bitterly, why wouldn't they want to leave him behind? He brought nothing but misfortune to anyone who got close to him, something he had learned from a personal experience. It was his punishment. His punishment for the crime of existing.

The doors opened, cutting his train of thought off. They had returned. All four of them had.

"Welcome back." he greeted politely

"It was an exhausting trip." Jinbe admitted "But we got what we were looking for. This is a gift for you. It's called Mera-Mera no Mi, and something tells me you will be having a grand time with it. Not to mention it will be a good weapon against those who wish to have you executed. With this fruit by your side, their attacks will accomplish nothing against you."

"But that won't be enough." he chuckled "That was what you were going to say, wasn't it?"

"Indeed." Jinbe nodded "I have got some powerful friends. Their Captain will take a liking to you, I guarantee you that. And once you join their crew, you'll be untouchable. We'll take you to meet them first thing in the morning."

-x-

"So, is this the one you've told me about, Jinbe?" a giant man peered down on them.

"Yes, Pops." Jinbe affirmed "This is Ace. I think that he would be a great addition to your crew. There are some troublesome people who are after him, and both of you can benefit from this arrangement."

"Hmmm....." Whitebeard stroked his moustache "I shall give him a week-long trial period. If I like what I see, he'll become one of my sons."

"Thanks, Pops." Jinbe bowed slightly "You won't be disappointed. Which reminds me, there is one other thing I want to talk to you about."

"Let's hear what they are."

Jinbe and Whitebeard descended below deck.

-x-

Ace didn't like the look a man sitting across from him was giving him. It was the kind of look straight out of horror novels. The look a predator often gave its prey. And Ace wasn't stupid. He knew that in this case, he was the prey.

"Fishman Karate: Millenium Fist!" Jinbe roared, striking the other man with terrifying precision, while Ace watched, bewildered

"You were going to sell my friend to the Government, weren't you, Teach?" Jinbe growled 

Ace breathed in, then breathed out. Jinbe's aura was pulsating. However, it paled in comparison to Whitebeard's own aura. A wave of power swept over the area, knocking half of Whitebeard's men - Teach included - out. Jinbe and Ace himself both whitstood it.

"That was Conqueror's Haki." Whitebeard announced "Roger was one of the few people who had it."

"Then Ace here should have it too." Jinbe noted "After all, he is Roger's only child."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The truth is revealed.
> 
> It will be a bumpy ride from here on out, I guarantee you that.


End file.
